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39

THE STALKER

A fter Jason, Bryce, and Abby left, Maddie stood up, pacing back and forth in front of the fireplace. I watched her, waiting for her to speak. When she told me what she had in mind, I wasn’t overly thrilled about the idea at first. But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense.

And now, I’m having doubts again.

“Are you sure about this?” My arms are crossed over my chest as I regard her, cocking my brow and tilting my head. Her gaze keeps raking over my body since I’m wearing only a pair of gray sweatpants.

“Just in case. It can’t hurt for me to be prepared.” She bites her lip, pulling at the neck of her t-shirt, showing her unease.

“I’m going to be firm with you. This won’t be easy.” I nod toward the punching bag. “And we’ll be using that.”

Grabbing the gloves from the weight bench, she holds them up, a wide smile on her face. “Hit me.”

My hand shoots out, my grip on the back of her neck firm, as I yank her closer to me. “I’m being serious, Maddie. If you want me to train you, I need you to be committed to this.”

Nodding vigorously, her stare is intent. “It’s a nervous habit. I joke when I shouldn’t.”

A small smile curves my lips as I release her neck. “I’ll let it slide this time.” I wink at her. “Okay. We’ll start with the basics before you start hitting things. Or people.” I flex my muscles and she loses her focus, her gaze drinking in my body as her eyes travel south of my torso.

“Maddie. Eyes on me, not my cock.”

Squaring her shoulders, she shakes her head as though she’s clearing her thoughts. “Sorry. I’m focused now.” Then her eyes skate to my crotch. In a small voice, she asks, “Do you have any other pants?”

“Baby girl.” Shaking my head, I tug her so she slams into my body. “Do you want to be trained, or do you just want me to fuck you in the garage?”

A small squeak comes from her lips. “Both?”

I chuckle. “Okay, let me give you some motivation. Focus on the lessons, give it your all, and I’ll fuck you in here until you can’t come anymore.”

Her eyes light up with desire. I notice how her nostrils flare as she inhales my scent. “Agreed.”

She’s so fucking adorable. I love how much she wants me and isn’t afraid to admit it.

“Okay. Now we’ll begin the lessons.” Stepping away from her, I hold up one finger. “Rule number one. Never show a predator your neck.” My movements are quick as I rush her, grabbing her face and turning her head sharply. My mouth hovers by the artery pounding in her neck.

She tries to suppress her shiver, but I feel it.

Leaning in, my teeth scrape her skin.

She tries not to react as I bite down, but a whimper escapes her before she moans.

“I better be the only one you make that sound for, baby girl,” I snarl.

“Only you.” She wiggles against my dick and I groan, instantly erect.

“I thought you were going to be serious,” I scolded.

“I’m trying,” she whines. “It’s just… the feel of you against me… especially when your cock is pressed into me like that.” Her words cut off as I grind against her, my mouth moving over her throat. “Maybe training me isn’t such a good idea.”

“It’s a great idea.” I shove her away from me, whirling around and resuming the lesson. “Rule number two. If you’re going to pick a fight with your enemy, you need three things: speed, strength, and intelligence. There’s always one you will excel in and one you will be weak in. But if you walk into a fight without knowing your strong and weak points, you lose.”

Her eyes narrow at me. “How do I know what my strong and weak points are?”

“Through training. We’re going to find out…” I step closer, leaning over her. “Right now.”

“Don’t you already know?” She huffs, causing me to grin.

A wide grin splits my face. “Of course, I know. But it doesn’t help you if I tell you. Let me show you.”

She bites her lip, and I grin, shaking my head. “Get your head in the game, baby girl.”

“I’d like your head to be somewhere, and it has nothing to do with games,” she mutters. I laugh at her, causing her to narrow her eyes, her muscles taut.

“You wanted me to train you. And if you’re good…” I wiggle my brows suggestively. Her eyes heat as she moves closer to me, her hand moving to my chest. Before she makes contact, my hand wraps around her wrist, stopping her. “Training first. Fun later.” I wink at her, releasing her wrist and stepping away to grab the boxing gloves. Carrying them over to her, a smirk is on my face as I take in her pouting lip. “Let’s begin.”

I need her to get serious. Though I’ve promised her I’d keep her safe, what if Ben somehow gets his hands on her? What if he takes her?

My monster lifts his head, eyes glowing. We burn down the world until we find her, then we fucking kill Ben.

A fter we finish our training session, I wrap my arm around Maddie as we head from the garage into my cabin. I can tell she’s sore by her deliberately careful movements, but I don’t say anything about it—at first.

Once we are inside the cabin and I head to the kitchen to grab two bottles of water, I return to find her wincing and stretching. “Still sore, baby girl?”

She grimaces, twisting her body around to stretch her back while looking at me. “Just a little.”

Walking over to her, I wait until she’s finished with her stretch before opening the water and handing it to her. Kissing the tip of her nose, I flash her a quick grin. “That was impressive, Maddie. You caught on quickly. Now you know your strengths and weaknesses. Hopefully, you’ll never have to use them…”

The smile that lights up her face is like the sun emerging after days of cloudiness. “Thanks. It was kinda fun. Even though it was hard. And I hated the idea of hitting you…” She takes a long pull from the water bottle, her gaze on mine. When she’s finished, she wipes the back of her hand over her mouth. “Next time you want me to hit someone, make sure Jason is here. He’d be fun to beat on.”

A snort of laughter comes from me as I raise a brow. “He’s a helluva fighter, Maddie. I’m sure he’d go easy on you, but it’s better you start with me.”

Her brows shoot up into her hairline. “And you’re not a helluva opponent?” Her voice is incredulous, making me chuckle.

“I didn’t say that.” Leaning forward, I capture her lips with mine. “But you know I’d never hurt you.”

“I know. Neither would Jason because you’d beat his ass.”

“You’re damn right I would. He knows better.” Winking at her, I nod toward the stairs. “How about I draw you a bath…” Grabbing her wrist, I pull her against my body, heat flooding me when her eyes spark with desire. “Then I can give you a massage before rewarding you for your exceptional performance.”

“That sounds heavenly.” She moves her head in slow circles. “I just want to do a few more stretches to loosen up.”

I squeeze her perky ass. “Sounds good. I’ll go get your bath started.” Giving her a quick kiss, I turn and head toward the stairs.

“Jagger.” Her voice stops me, and I turn around expectantly, waiting. Her face is soft as she stands there, pink lips slightly parted. “Thank you for everything.” Her voice quivers over the last word and she blinks a couple of times, as though she’s holding back tears.

“Anything for you, baby girl. Always .” With a smile and a wink, I turn and head up the stairs.

When I reach the top, I glance over the railing at her. Pulling my phone from the pocket of my sweatpants, I text Bryce. “Any updates?”

He responds in less than a minute. “No one knows where Ben is. He disappeared. Hasn’t gone to the class or the apartment.”

“What about their roommate, Chloe? Does she know anything?”

“Jason’s been monitoring her. I hacked into the police report. Seems Ben disappeared and didn’t tell her anything. She’s quite pissed about both her roommates abandoning her.”

“Anything on Ben’s phone number? Or how he got mine?”

“Not yet, Jagger. But I’m not giving up.”

I sigh. “I know you won’t. Thanks for all you do.”

“Anytime.”

Pocketing my phone, I hurry into the bathroom to get Maddie’s bath started, my thoughts on the text messages with Bryce. We’ve got nothing on Ben, but he obviously knows I have Maddie and somehow, has my phone number.

That gives him an advantage I don’t like.